5D mkii underexposing?

guitarkid

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i'm not sure what it is but most of the shots i take with mkii are underexposed. i always shoot M and never had an issue with any of my previous canon bodies. i've had the 20d, 30d, 40d, 50d, 5d. if i set for iso, say iso1600 for indoors, and F5.6, and shutter, doesn't matter.....the meter is always in the middle, set for proper exposure...it comes out dark!

i then set to full auto to see what the cam would select. it chooses iso 800....half as much for indoors! the F is the same, and shutter a little different, and the shot looks great. i don't get it.

with any of my other bodies i have always started with iso, 100 usually outside, and 800 to 1000 indoors, then Fstop based on DOF and shutter accordingly. this is how i have done it for years. this mkii is just not cooperating.

bottom line..... regardless of settings, the meter is showing correct exposure but it's underexposed. maybe i need to jack the exp. comp setting or something, but i never had to do that before.
 
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Just figure out how the meter is reading then keep that in mind when setting your exposure. You needn't be a slave to the center of the dial.

What meter mode do you have it in, by the by?
 
I have an over-exposeure problem. Sorta. My shots metered in the center are usually blown out in evaluative mode. Spot metering is an improvement, but I lose detail in the shadows. I pretty much shoot -1 EV and lighten in post. My 40D is spot on compared to the 5D mark II. Dunno if it's the FF and resolution. I should pick Canon's brain about this.
 
I don't have a 5d, but my XTi consistently under exposes even really easy to meter scenes 1/3rd-2/3rds of a stop low. Not that this helps you in the slightest but when I contacted canon, they said that that was normal.
 

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